The following description includes information that can be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
Internal combustion engines were developed early in the 19th century, and have been utilized to drive industrial equipment, generate electrical power, and provide motive power for vehicles. While the increasing cost of fuel and growing awareness of the environmental impact the use of internal combustion engines have led to the increasing popularity of hybrid and electric vehicles, internal combustion engines remain the dominant source of power for automobiles.
In an internal combustion engine (ICE) system, a mixture of fuel (e.g., gasoline, diesel fuel, natural gas) and an oxidant (e.g., air or oxygen) is injected into a combustion chamber. Upon ignition, the mixture combusts and produces gases (including steam, carbon dioxide, and other combustion products) and heat. The contents of the combustion chamber expand as they are heated. The expansion of these gases within the confined space of the combustion chamber generates force that drives the moving parts (e.g., pistons) of the engine. The return of the piston to its initial position at a subsequent point in the engine cycle ejects exhaust gases from the combustion chamber, which include unconsumed fuel and oxidant in addition to combustion products such as carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. In short, an ICE system produces power by transforming chemical energy stored in the fuel and oxidant mixture into thermal energy and mechanical energy.
Even though ICEs have been in existence for a long period of time, they have not attained high efficiency levels. In fact, the sophisticated ICEs utilized in vehicles that are produced today are less than 20% efficient. The inefficiency of the ICE is, at least in part, a result of incomplete or partial combustion of fuel, which also results in the production of harmful pollutants such as carbon monoxide and soot. As such, improvements to the ICE's efficiency would be expected to reduce both fuel consumption and air pollution.
One approach to improve the efficiency of ICEs is to improve the efficiency of the combustion process. As a chemical process, complete oxidation of fuel requires careful control of the ratio between fuel and oxidant. For optimal efficiency this ratio should be consistent throughout the combustion chamber; the presence of regions within the combustion chamber with non-optimal fuel to oxidant ratios would lead to inefficient combustion within those regions. To this end various devices have been proposed to optimize the mixing of fuel and oxidant. Japanese patent application 2001248449 (by Hiroshisa et al, filed Mar. 7, 2000) describes the use of a rotatable valve element that acts to generate a swirling flow of air into the combustion chamber of an ICE. Japanese patent application 2002256874 (by Mitsuyuki, filed Mar. 2, 2001) describes a similar device with an asymmetrical rotatable valve element having both annular and elliptical portions. Similarly, Japanese patent application 2012102623 (filed Nov. 8, 2010) describes the use of a thin, rotatable planar valve element to control airflow at different rates of intake to generate a vortex of air entering a combustion chamber. All of these, however, rely on the use of failure prone moving parts to control airflow and generate the desired a vortex of air. In addition, control and optimization of mixing of fuel within this air vortex is not addressed.
In another approach to improving the efficiency of ICEs, U.S. Pat. No. 7,487,764 (to Lee, filed Feb. 21, 2008) discloses a pre-ignition fuel treatment system that strives to improve the efficiency of combustion (and subsequently reduce the production of unwanted of by-products) ionizing the fuel in a reactor vessel before entering into the combustion chamber. In addition, Lee further discloses the utilization of the high temperature, high pressure environment of the engine's exhaust gases to create a reaction zone in which the hydrocarbon molecules of the fuel are “cracked” to generate more readily combustible species. Ionization and cracking of fuel in the air fuel mixture are accomplished by passing the mixture over a rod of catalytic material in a smooth, laminar flow.
Despite the use of air vortices to improve mixing and and pre-ignition fuel treatment techniques, the efficiency of ICEs has yet to reach optimal levels. Thus, there is still a need to improve on existing ICE systems to further improve efficiency and reduce emission of harmful by-products.
All publications herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention can contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements.
As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.
Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all Markush groups used in the appended claims.